When it comes to buying fruit, most people gravitate toward oranges, apples, bananas, and grapes. They often skip over the more unusual fruits. One of the fruits that are over looked is the kiwifruit. The kiwifruit is native to China. Many regions of Europe, South America, and North America have shortened the name from kiwifruit to simply kiwi. This little fruit has a brown peel which contains many hairs. Inside the peel, the fleshy part of the fruit is green, and the pulp in the center is white. The black seeds are located around the pulp and are edible. The taste of the kiwifruit is sweet and is described to be a mixture of strawberry, banana, and pineapple. The kiwifruit health benefits range from protecting against age related macular degeneration to having anti-oxidant properties that fight off aging.

Fights Diseases & Lowers Cholesterol
Kiwifruits are high in fiber, making them good for digestion. Fruits that are high in fiber help to improve diseases like diabetes. A natural occurring sugar alcohol, called inositol, is present in the kiwi. This compound might have a positive effect in the regulation of diabetes. This compound might also help with nerve conduction velocity, which is found in diabetic neuropathy.

Fiber helps to control sugar levels, and binds to toxic substances located in the colon. This helps to eliminate the toxic compounds from the colon which makes the organ function better. Diets high in fiber have also been proven to lower cholesterol levels, improve the health of people suffering from cardiovascular diseases, and lower the risk of a heart attack. One of the aspects for a healthy heart is an adequate sodium to potassium ratio. This ratio is excellent in the kiwifruit. This aspect lessens the chance that a person will have hypertension.

Good For Your Eyes
The kiwifruit contains high amounts of vitamins A, C, and E which are the most typical anti-oxidant vitamins. The Archives of Ophthalmology have published a series of studies that has proven that eating three servings or more of fruit can lessen the risk of developing macular degeneration, which is an age related eye disease. The study was performed on 110,000 men and women that took place over several decades. The study showed that the people who ate fruits containing a high amount of vitamins A, C, and E had a better protection rate against macular degeneration than those who ate fewer of these fruits.

Fights Aging
Along with protecting against macular degeneration, the vitamins A, C, and E are very powerful in helping to fight off signs of aging. The high amounts of these vitamins in the kiwifruit have been proven to fight off damage done by free radicals. Free radicals can destroy the cells in the body and cause early aging signs as well as various diseases, such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Contains Minerals
Another great benefit of the kiwifruit is the fact that it is loaded with a variety of minerals, or electrolytes, that are necessary for the replenishment of these electrolytes during exercise. This electrolyte replenishment is especially important for people who live in a hot environment. The Chinese came up with a kiwi-based sports drink that was designed particularly to help boost electrolytes in athletes that trained in hot environments. They added a 5% increase of carbohydrates to this juice to help regulate and maintain glucose levels while the athletes were training.

Aids in Weight Loss
A weight loss fruit, the kiwifruit is an excellent fruit to eat when losing weight. One kiwi contains just 45 calories, 3 grams of fat, 1 gram of protein, 11 grams of carbohydrates, and 2.5 grams of fiber. This is one of the fruits that are lowest in calories. The fiber in the kiwi will help you feel fuller longer, and there’s no harm at all in eating more that one at a time. Kiwifruits are also high in potassium, in fact, they have the same amount as bananas. Potassium is great for sore muscle relief.

Other health benefits that kiwifruits can provide are the following:

• Prevents coughing and wheezing, particularly in children
• Prevents asthma
• Protects again DNA mutations
• Helps with impotence
• Boosts the immune system
• Helps with depression

As you can see, kiwifruit health benefits range all over. Next time you’re at the store, don’t just walk by these odd looking fruits. Put a few of them in your cart and try them out.

This article was submitted by Linda who runs NaturalHealthEzine.com a natural health blog dedicated to helping people live the best life possible.

I have a confession, I’ve never felt the most unhealthiest than I do now. I believe in a little help from our super food friends and keeping our nutrition in balance, but let’s face it– life is stressful and it’s easy to fall off the wagon and drink 3 cups of coffee and one alcoholic beverage daily! Perhaps from this nasty habit, is why my body is feeling achy and inflamed. It’s very hard to wake up in the morning– I’m groggy and achy (and yeah, stumbling for the coffee first thing instead of water). Coffee ain’t the only thing brewing, I always feel a headache brewing as well.

I decided I need to not only cut back on the bad habit but supplement my body with what it needs to recover. So I headed over to sunfood.com and prescribed myself with the following items. I’m anxiously awaiting their arrival and I’ll explain why I chose the products I did and how I expect them to help me. I hope I have great results to share later!

I’ll try not to complain too much about what ails me, but hoping I’m not the only one who feels like crap and figured this could help someone in the same boat as me!

Water isn’t hydrating enough?!

Naturally I recognize I should drink enough water. And I do! But I can drink 4 glasses in a row and not feel hydrated. For some reason my bottled water that I have delivered in 5 gallon jugs just isn’t wet enough?! To solve this issue I bought “Crystal Energy“. I’ll try to keep the description simple and not scientific. Crystal Energy is in liquid form and you put 40 drops per each 32 oz. of water, and it reportedly makes your water more hydrating. Tiny mineral clusters developed by
Dr. Patrick Flanagan apparently create the negative ions to make your water more thirst quenching. That’s exactly what I’m looking for!

Every health nut needs a quality greens powder!

When I used to drink plenty of raw juices and wheat grass I felt much better. I’ve been looking for a quality greens powder to add to my smoothies or just sprinkle in whatever I can think of! I know green powders are excellent blood purifiers and would help balance out my acidic ph level and inflamed limbs. There were a few choices on sunfood.com but I felt the spirulina powder by Healthforce was what my body was craving. Spirulina is blue green algae.

The benefits of Spirulina I’m expecting are:

• It contains chlorophyll which is identical to our body’s hemoglobin molecule whose job is to oxygenate our blood. So taking spirulina powder can help oxygenate my blood which in turn cleanses my blood (from toxins) which in turn helps protects me not only from getting sick, but from pollution and aging as well.
• It contains a a long-chain Omega-6 fatty acid which reduces aches and pains due to joint inflammation which I’m certain I have from being hunched over the computer all day and just generally living a modern life in an urban city. Omega-6 helps hair, nails and skin so it’s a beauty related as well!
• believe it out not, it’s a complete protein!
• it also contains an essential amino acid tryptophan, which creates seratonin, which should help balance my mood and make me more able to deal with stress, because lately, I can’t handle much stress!

Buy the spirulina powder at sunfood.com

Those yoga sessions just aren’t loosening me up anymore!

I admit my yoga mini sessions only last about 20 minutes but I’m still doing them fairly regularly 3 times a week at least and I only feel temporary relief. Yeah I should do longer sessions but a little help couldn’t hurt? Enter MSM Powder 16 oz. (Methyl-Sulfonyl-Methane). Modern farming and cooking food removes MSM from our food. It helps flexibility, so yoga should be more enjoyable and I’ll practice longer and it helps sore muscles heal which I need to not discourage me from taking jogs and long yoga sessions on a out of shape body. Again it is also a beauty product as it helps build collagen for smoother skin. I already have had great success taking MSM pills for my old ankle injury (tendon on inner ankle bone suffered a deep cut from a rock 10 yrs ago) which if I don’t take MSM will throb and act up. So I feel the powder form will take me back to those results I felt from taking the pills by replacing the chore of taking pills and will be more economical.

Buy the MSM powder at Sunfood.com

Wish me luck!

I’ll do a follow up post in a few months and let everyone know how this is working out. I am setting out to do a gradual change, nothing drastic like a fast or all raw foods diet. I can’t shock my body into that lifestyle again from the state it is in now. My goal is to cut back my bad habits and live more in balance and moderation and use these supplements as aids to help me feel less miserable as I do that!

I chose products which were in liquid form because I believe not only is it more economical, but that they absorb into the body easier this way.

I’ve written an update to this post here.

Photo by Pensiero

Don’t you hate getting sick from long flights? Feeling completely helpless and unprotected as those around you cough and sneeze knowing you are breathing that? Next holiday season, be prepared!

I’ve developed a system that kept me healthy from a grueling trip spanning over 20 hrs flying and 3 climate zones while all those around me were sick and I thought I’d share my secret.

What you need to buy

Go to the health food store or Amazon and buy a box of either chewable tablets or a gel capsule of some herbal concoction with Echinacea.

from wikipedia:

Echinacea is popularly believed to be an immunostimulator, stimulating the body’s non-specific immune system and warding off infections. A study commonly used to support that belief is a 2007 meta-analysis in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.[13] The studies pooled in the meta-analysis used different types of echinacea, different parts of the plant, and various dosages. This review cannot inform recommendations on the efficacy of any particular type of echinacea, dosage, or treatment regimen. The safety of echinacea under long-term use is also unknown.

I found a box of gel capsules that was a blend of Echinacea, Goldenseal and Cat’s Claw but I can’t find a picture of it online to share. A widely available such supplement (that I also used this when I ran out of the first) is “Enzymatic Therapy Esberitox Chewables”– Start taking these as prescribed on box a few days before you travel.

Note: Echinacea is something that works better if you haven’t taken it in awhile. If you’ve been taking a lot of it already consider these other options.

Other items to buy at the same time are:

• Vitamin C- I pick a time released 1,000 mg type that is “buffered” so it doesn’t make me nauseous. Here is what the bottle says: “Vitamin C provides antioxidant activity and is intended to proved nutritive support for normal, healthy collagen synthesis, cartilage and bone development, immune function, capillary and blood vessel integrity and nerve impulse transmission. “
• Vitamin D- The Sunshine Vitamin!
• Vitamin E

3 days before you travel

Start taking all of the vitamins and echinacea as written on packages regularly.

The day you travel

Take a double dose of all of your vitamins and echinacea the day of your flight. Bring along your vitamins to continue your regular dosage / schedule on the airplane (if your flight is long). Don’t drag all the bottles in your carry on, separate your doses to a ziploc bag or small container.

When you arrive

When you arrive to your destination, take a shower as soon as you can!
The next day take a double dose of all your vitamins again!

More Tips

• drink a lot of water- ask stewardess for a large bottle to yourself and buy it if you have to (sit in aisle seat to make multiple bathroom trips easier).
• wash your hands and use anti-bacterial gel at least three times during your flight if it’s longer than 6 hours
• keep your nasal passages moist- either wet your nostrils with CLEAN hands or bring a natural nasal / saline spray

I hope this advice helps someone be prepared for their next long flight and changing climate zones. I felt I was about to catch a cold about three times in my grueling travel through different climates but just doubled my vitamin doses on those days and bounced right back to health. I know it was the vitamins that pulled me through and kept me protected while flying on the plane with a bunch of sick people!

What does it mean to “Alkalize” your body? Well, it’s the opposite of having your system be Acidic. Remember those litmus papers from high school lab? You can actually use those to test our urine or saliva to see what your pH level is. We ideally want to score at least in the 6-7 range because this means we are not too acidic (which can lead to health problems).

What causes an acidic pH level?

These foods, for starters:

• coffee
• meat
• dairy
• beer
• aspartame
• chocolate
• vinegar
• soda

What creates an alkaline level?:

• leafy greens
• lemons (tricky because before entering your body they are acidic)
• olive oil
• most fruits and vegetables
• herbal teas
• fish

Why is it bad to have an acidic pH level? (Or: Why is it good to be Base?)

It is now known that a more alkaline pH level is most desirable in order to loose weight and keep it off, and to ward off disease. Obesity is actually linked to an acidic pH level. This is because acid is a waste product of our body after it uses energy. If we are fueling our body with acidic foods and liquids, we can not get rid of it properly and the acid builds up as fat.

Download a free Alkaline food chart here

Watch this fascinating Video about alkalizing!

Some other undesirable effects of acid buildup are:

• weak immune system
• chronic fatique
• speeds up aging process
• higher likeliness of cancerous mutations
• digestion/elimination problems
• diabeties

Some benefits of alkalizing your body are:

• thin body that keeps the weight off
• disease free body
• youthful appearance slows down the aging process
• promotes healthy cell growth (non mutated)
• feel energized
• digest and eliminate properly

What’s your pH level right now? find out.

What you can start doing TODAY:

• Add fresh squeezed lemons to your water
• Cut back on coffee (no more than 2 cups a day)

So….Drop the acid and get base…pronto!

Like many people these days, you might be searching for an alternative to antibiotics. It always seems any little infection we get, the answer from doctors is always the same: Antibiotics!

It is foolish to always rely on antibiotics as the quick fix to any infection, since they can have so many different causes, and every time we take these meds, our bodies build up a resistance to them…meaning that antibiotics often cause more problems than they ultimately fix!

But there is an alternative…. GSE – Grapefruit Seed Extract. Seriously!

This “liquid gold” is made from the pulp of the grapefruit seed. GSE is a bitter, yellow-tinged liquid. Just a few drops mixed in water or juice is the usual method of usage. Here’s my favorite: Nutribiotic – GSE Liquid Concentrate, 4 fl oz

The seeds of grapefruits, when processed into the liquid, unleash their plant chemicals (or, scientifically speaking: Polyphenolic compounds). The plant chemicals released from the grapefruit seed happen to be extremely anti-microbial , meaning they fight against bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites and disallow them to thrive. GSE doesn’t stop there. It also strengthens the immune system and naturally aids the body to rid itself of toxins, and to neutralize free-radicals (making it an excellent antioxidant.)

It has so many other uses…here are just a few of them:

Internal uses

• Sore throats: gargle with it a few times a day to rid you of your sore throat.
• Alkalizing substance:It is known that alkalizing the body (or maintaining a healthy pH level in the body that is not too acidic) is the key to health disease prevention. Fungi, bacteria, and parasites can’t survive in the alkaline environment created by GSE.
• Intestinal problems: Stomach pains, digestive problems, and diarrhea can all benefit from a shot of water with 6 or so drops of GSE.
• Vaginal yeast infections: A douche with GSE can clear up a yeast infection.

External uses

• Jock itch
• Thrush
• Skin fungus
• Insect bites
• HPV and herpes

Nutribiotic – GSE Liquid Concentrate, 4 fl oz is an essential on any backpacking trip. I traveled all over the world and it came in very useful for every little off stomach in third world countries.

Best of all, you don’t build up immunity to it…and you don’t need a prescription. You just feel….clean inside. Thank me later.

So whenever you are looking for an antibiotic alternative, reach for the GSE! This anti-microbial “liquid gold” has over 100 uses to ward off fungus, bacteria, viruses and even intestinal parasites!

In our modern times, highly processed foods, new methods of genetically engineering our food, and large amounts of chemicals and pesticides haunting our favorite fruits and vegetables are all increasing the bad bacteria in our intestines. This is making America diseased – causingIBS, obesity, yeast infections, weak immune systems , and more.

Today’s altered vegetables are inferior to their grandparents, missing the HSO’s – Homeostatic Soil Organisms – actually helpful to humans. These organisms live in soil, and were traditionally left intact with our crops. They help eat all the bad bacteria and toxic build up on the walls of our intestines, the ones that make us sick and not digest / eliminate food properly. These bad bacteria also cause food allergies and make us more susceptible to picking up colds and flu’s that are going around. Unfortunately, our ultra-germ phobic society has thrown out the good with the bad.

There is something you can do: Put back the good bacteria

Garden of Life – Primal Defense, 180 caplets has all the HSO’s you need to fight the bad guys in your gut.

When I was on these products, they really worked to strengthen my immunity and digestive health. I even traveled through Mexico, and my stomach was way stronger than my boyfriend’s (who ended up vomiting and diarrhea, like most tourists.) I really believe the HSO’s protected me: It’s probably what the Mexicans have that we don’t!